Ramayana — Ayodhya Kanda, Sarga 12, Shloka 50
द्वादशः सर्गः — Kaikeyi’s Boons and Dasaratha’s Moral Collapse
Ayodhya Kanda 12
एतावदुक्त्वा वचनं कैकेयी विरराम ह।विलपन्तं च राजानं न प्रतिव्याजहार सा।।।।
etāvad uktvā vacanaṃ kaikeyī virarāma ha |
vilapantaṃ ca rājānaṃ na prativyājahāra sā ||
इतना ही वचन कहकर कैकेयी चुप हो गई। राजा विलाप करता रहा, पर उसने उसे कोई उत्तर नहीं दिया।
Kaikeyi, having spoken to this extent remained silent. She heeded not the lament ofthe king.
FAQs
Dharma includes compassion and right speech; Kaikeyī’s refusal to respond to a suffering person illustrates a lapse in empathetic duty within relationships.
After swearing that only Rama’s exile will satisfy her, Kaikeyī stops speaking and ignores Daśaratha’s grief.
The verse emphasizes (by contrast) karuṇā (compassion) as a virtue—shown here through its absence in Kaikeyī’s conduct.